Before I start, let me preface this by saying there is no edtech in this post, no cool tips, no new tools. That will all come at another time.

I’m not sure how much this is like my past ISTE and CUE reflections, but this conference was all about relationships for me. As I sit on this plane departing from San Antonio, I can’t help but feel closer who I want to be. I feel even more in love with my wife, Jenna, even though she wasn’t even there with us. I appreciated our phone conversations and talking all about her amazing work with other educators deepened the feeling that I am extremely lucky to be with her. I definitely would not be who I am without her.

As relationships at the conference go, I keep thinking of one word. Family.

I feel like I’m developing an even larger edufamily than the one I’ve developed with my friends in CUE. There are people I spent the last few days with who now feel like my long lost brother or sister. Others who have been like the wise cousins who watch out for you as you step out and try new things. People who I am sad to be leaving. An honest feeling of sadness and longing. I hesitate to name anyone here, as I would surely leave someone really important out and I’d feel terrible. I also hear at least one of them likes to keep a low profile.

Again, there’s no edtech content in this post, but this is what my ISTE experience was truly about… my edufamily and their overall amazingness. I can’t wait to learn and create with you again and share some more amazing experiences together. Let me know the next time you are in the Bay Area.

Look who we ran into at the Riverwalk!

Impromtu dinner on the Riverwalk!

Hanging with Trevor and Tess

Amber and the Aikman ring

I can’t even caption all of these photos… but Lisa rocks!

Michelle

Nolan the rapper

Remember the Alamo

Yep, the awkward high five.

…and then came the #doubleawkwardhighfive.

Two Glassholes

Obviously it’s someone’s first time with Glass. The smile never fades.

Selak the Stoic One

Who’s head isn’t looking down? The one who has the strange thing attached to his face.

Liam and Kalen rocking the ClassDojo shirts.

Krista rocking the Google Sites prezi!

What happens when someone amazing wears glass.

And Peter Reynolds was that amazing person.

Terry, leader of The Fellowship of The Dots!

Trev and Taylor

Trevor rocked the mic more than once.
*mic drop*

Greg and Ariel. A blast to hang out with!

Unsure what Trevor’s doing on stage this time…

Late night card game. I can see Glass being beneficial for remember what cards someone else has…

For some reason I didn’t catch a photo of the whole #EpicYEN Iron Chef team, but you can see some on stage.

2 Responses to ISTE 13 Reflections – EduFamily

I agree! The last two ISTE conferences I attended I felt like I made great professional connections. This year it felt different. I described it as summer camp bonds, I am literally already looking forward to the next time I see everyone. EduFamily also is an accurate description. No matter what phrase we use to describe it, the connections are special and I will think fondly of the group and probably laugh a few times.